Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Door County ride has everything

- Chin Up Message Lori Nickel on Twitter at @LoriNickel, Instagram at @bylorinick­el or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ChinUpLori­Nickel

Sturgeon Bay – Most people have a story for how they got in to their favorite sport.

Ever since my bad knee finally gave out at Tough Mudder in 2017, I have been looking for … something. I loved my half marathons, triathlon sprints, mud runs and obstacle course races. These events all gave me a purpose in the gym and goals to achieve and friends to train with.

But with a bad knee that will dog me for the rest of my life, my doctors have told me to stop running. I turned to cycling, and it has become a good alternativ­e for me – and I hope you think about it for yourself, too.

Whether you take advantage of endof-season sales and buy a bike now and ride until the snow falls (or through it with a fat tire bike), or join a gym with indoor cycling classes, or try a cycling class at a boutique gym like CycleBar, cycling is a great way to stay in shape.

By all means, run, crawl and box as much as you want for as long as you can. But consider riding too.

In the last few years, thanks to riding in the Trek 100, the Scenic Shore 150 and taking a Trek Travel vacation riding through Tuscany, I have discovered the joy of pushing for longer distances and bigger hill climbs.

Finally, I was ready to try my first century ride.

But which one?

I searched the internet and stumbled upon the Door County Century Ride and started training in June.

By the time I got to the DCC starting line Sept. 8, I knew this would be the sport for me for the rest of my life.

The sun had not yet worked its way up out of a cloudy slumber, but hundreds of riders were ready to go, their bikes and helmets fashioned with flashing lights, their waterproof windbreake­rs accented with reflective stripes.

In the pre-dawn hour before a ride that would stretch 100 miles throughout some of the prettiest roads of Wisconsin, it was hard to imagine that the 41st Door County Century ride might be the best kept secret in Wisconsin.

“At the springtime Wheel & Sprocket Expo, I was surprised by the amount of folks who had never heard of Door County,” said John Mory, director and host of the DCC. “With 41 years of history, it's a fantastic event.”

The 100-mile ride began in Sturgeon Bay and traversed to the north and the east, to Egg Harbor and Fish Creek and past Ephraim, all the way to Sister Bay, with several waterfront views of Green Bay.

The route then crossed “the door” to the Lake Michigan side of Door County, through Kangaroo Lake and over to Bailey's Point, down to Cave Point and then the Sturgeon Bay Canal Lighthouse.

In all, the ride featured hills for sure, but they were mostly gradual climbs. And the weather was good. The temperatur­e lingered in the 50s with an eastern wind of 12 miles per hour.

The Door County Century Ride has been around since 1979 and it shows - it was an incredibly well-organized event.

It was also affordable, compared to other rides that might also serve as big fundraiser­s. For about $75 (or cheaper if you registered early) DCC cyclists could stop for food at six rest stops along the way, and it was good: breakfast pastries and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and an entire stop dedicated to strawberry shortcake – all the carbs and sugars needed to power through a ride like this.

There were always plenty of volunteers, many of them like students and parents, helping direct traffic, or Barry Mellen, who drove one of the three support vans. These drivers were available throughout the day to make sure riders had what they needed, or to come to their aid if they got hurt. The volunteers earned money for their non-profit organizati­ons.

“In my case, my daughter's D.C. trip,” said Mellen, a history teacher in Sturgeon Bay. “Others for the football team, band, student council. Our district has had this relationsh­ip with the Century Ride for quite a few years. I just found out today that our district earned $8,445 this year for our various groups. “It is a great opportunit­y.” Besides this being such a community-oriented and community-supported event, what I appreciate­d most was the route itself, and surprising­ly lack of car and truck traffic. We cyclists are at great risk out there - totally vulnerable and at the mercy of the distracted driver.

The Door County Century ride takes the roads less traveled, especially the weekend after Labor Day. When there were tricky sections on the highway or dangerous intersecti­ons, there was a police officer there to guide traffic.

It allowed the cyclist to just worry about their ride for the next 6-10 hours, or whatever it took to complete the 100 miles.

And there are other options too; the Door County Century Ride also offers routes of 30, 50 and 70-mile distances.

I had trained all summer for 100 miles, saving my long rides for the weekend, and building up week after week with distances of 45, 55, 65 and 75 miles. It was a fun way for me to get out and enjoy being on my bike and the good weather, but also meet other cyclists too. I never knew that small armies or road warriors took to the streets of Dousman for long rides, or that there are almost always training clubs associated with bike shops, like VeloCity in Pewaukee.

Unfortunat­ely, I had to bail out of the Door County Ride after 71 miles (for medical reasons), I will never get over it, and so I will simply have to try again next year.

If you're thinking about doing your first century ride, this is one that comes highly recommende­d.

“It's relatively flat,” said Chris Kosinski, who has done the DCC ride four times. “A few hills here and there.”

“It's still challengin­g though,” said veteran rider Adam Ward. “If you want to go really fast and go hard, you can do that. But there's something for everybody. There's people on mountain bikes, people on $10,000 bikes…

“And it's scenic. While you're suffering, at least you get a better view."

 ?? Lori Nickel Milwaukee Journal Sentinel USA TODAY NETWORK – WIS. ??
Lori Nickel Milwaukee Journal Sentinel USA TODAY NETWORK – WIS.

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